#enthrone the Lord in our heart

[pursuitseternal]

“Master me:” the Sub!Ascended Astarion x F!Reader fic of your nsfw dreams, update to “The Rogue You Were”

Ascended Astarion x F!Reader | E | 5.1 K of Sub!Vampire Lord

Summary: It’s all yours, the power, the wealth. But your Vampire Lord wishes to give you something he’s never given willingly before… his submission.

CW: NSFW, Dom/Sub Dynamics, soft!dom for his trauma healing, ThroneSex ™️, body worship, oral s3x, orgasm denial, orgasm control, “only come when you’re told,” begging, pleading, whimpering Astarion, praise kink…

Read here if you prefer AO3

For @marimosalad and @anaisbaillon

Continue and accept the gift of his submission…

🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸

He has summoned you, his lady, his bride, his beloved. The right hand and consort to the Vampire Lord. Of course, you didn’t come right away when the servant knocked on your door. He had been attending business all day. So many deals and promises and threats and examples to be made, he’s been attending from his throne all day. Yes. He held his court from his magnificent chair, staring down from his mighty gilded seat of power, glaring with vermillion eyes at anyone who entered the presence of the Ascendant Lord.

Now he calls for you, after hours behind closed doors. You give it… a little time. Not so much as to try his patience, but enough that you don’t go running into his arms in front of all of Baldur’s Gate. A delicate balance, one you can excuse by flouncing your dress, changing the jewels around your neck. You settled on something dark and sheer and elegant, nearly see-through in places, enough to catch the eye and make the mouth water.

Make his mouth water. That’s all you cared for anyway.

Leaving your chambers, you sweep through the halls, every servant, every guest, or Patriar, or merchant in your palace stops to bow and curtesy. Careful not to disrespect you. For you are his.

You arrive at last to the large, thick doors to his great hall. You can feel his eyes on you before you even turn the corner and breach the room. Astarion sits, reclined. Bored. Distant. But the moment you sweep into his presence, he claps his hands.

Silence falls on the crowd. “Leave,” he hisses quietly. It slices through the din. People retreat in an instant. They cleave around you, separating around where you stand just inside the grand chamber, distances away from your lover, enthroned, and yet you can almost feel his breath on your skin. Even from here.

It takes but a moment for you to finally be alone. His eyes rake over you, his back reclining in his throne, his knee crossed over his leg. But his gaze is only on you. He crooks a finger at you as the doors close, pushed by his magic and sealed by his power.

It is just him now. And he wants you to come… closer.

You obey, feeling more than seeing as his smirk curls his lips and skews his brows. One step, then another, you climb the dais. Then, you stop. Waiting. Eyes locked into one another, his breathing is rapid and shallow. And you furrow, sensing something swirling beneath that cold exterior. You see it then, a slight tweak at the corner of his eyes, a clench of his jaw. And then he lets out a muffled, half-swallowed sob.

“Everything, my love, it’s all ours. Sovereigns of Baldur’s Gate. King and queen in all but name…” his chest shakes. His eyes, wide and wet, look up at you. “It feels… wonderful… horrible… I- I don’t know…”

Without another thought, you hurry to his side, wrapping your arms around his head, cradling him into your breast. His tears are wet on your chest. You can almost feel it, that facade of his power and callous attitude crumbling in your arms. He takes a breath, inhaling your scent, his arms clutching hard around your waist.

“I thought you wouldn’t come, when you were late. For a moment… I thought you had…” he swallows the rest of his fears.

“I would never leave you,” you whisper, warming your words with all the feeling in your heart, running your hand through those silken, silver, unruly curls.

“I… I want to give you something, my love,” he steadies his voice, pulling back from your embrace, arms tugging you into his lap.

“Name it, and I will gladly accept, Astarion,” you smile, gently, settling yourself on the spread of his thighs.

“I want…” he swallows again, his face so close to yours. Haunted, troubled. Something is gnawing at him. “I want to give you everything…”

“You already have,” you smile sweetly, palming his cheek.

“No,” he shakes his head, “I don’t mean…” he clears his throat, eyes scanning the room around you as the shadows begin to lengthen, the colors of sunset pouring in through the arched and vaulted windows. “I… we have won. I have power; influence, riches, comfort…” his brow arches a bit rakishly, “…love. I have everything that Cazador deprived me of for centuries. More than he ever did. I am the most powerful vampire in the realms.”

You pause. Waiting. Watching those eyes flickering with the embers of his power. His voice rings with his pride, those traces of shattered confidence evaporated. But then he looks square in your eyes again.

And all that pride and power disappear.

“And I want you to have me submit to you, my love,” he breathed, his voice hissing between his teeth. As if he is in pain. In agony. “I want to give you my submission.”

“Submit to me?” you drop your hand from his face, letting it rest on his chest.

“You are the one thing that grounds me, you know, that pulls me back from becoming a… the very thing I once feared. I want… I want to give you… everything,” he leans in to place a shaking, hesitant kiss on your lips, “I want to grant you even this favor, darling.”

“If you wish,” you reply, tapping your hand on his heaving chest. “I do not require it of you.”

“I know,” he smiles so, so slightly, “that’s why I can give it to you. That's why I can… trust you.”

Your breath catches. The need in his eyes bores into you. He’s waiting. Waiting for you. For your command. “Very well, if it would please you.”

“Greatly, but you’ll have to be harsher than that to make me submit.” He flashes his teeth, a bit of that wicked, cheeky flare you know and love in him.

“I don’t want to be too harsh, I don’t want to hurt you…” you bite your lip, careful how you mention your worry. You can almost hear the ghosts of Cazador’s voice from… you shudder to remember.

He purses his lips, thinking. “Don’t call me boy, or belittle me, don’t starve me, just be the decent person I know and love, and I’m sure this will be pleasurable for both of us…”

You nod, gently. “Then kneel,” you whisper. Sweetly. Too sweetly. He raises a brow at your tone.

“No,” he pushes, that irascible smirk teasing and twitching the corner of his mouth.

You fight the foolish grin that your mouth aches to show. But you keep yourself stern. Commanding. “On… your… knees… Astarion,” you order, warmth in your voice even as you bite at your words.

He moves you by your waist, reverently sliding you off his lap to make his way to the steps of the dais.

“Too far, my love,” you chuckle, savoring his quick little turn as you settle yourself in his throne. “There…” you give a sigh for affect, nestling yourself in the gilded confines of this chair, running your fingers over the gold filigree arms. “Kneel at my feet, lover, and take that doublet off while you’re at it. It’s far too expensive to be ruined by the things I am about to have you do….”

Oh, how he obeys. Shivering and shuddering in delight. A coy, contented smile on his face as he slinks off the heavy- embroidered jacket to leave in a pile on his floor.

Slowly, he sinks to his knees at the top of the dais, close to you. So close, you can see his nostrils flare with every breath, you can watch the muscles of his bare chest clenching as he sits back on his heels. He places his palms on his thighs, one on each, eyes looking right into yours.

Waiting. And eager.

You smile, ready to lavish him with praise. “What a good darling,” you purr. “Quite the sight, the most powerful vampire in all the realms… kneeling before me. It can make a consort quite heated…” you fan your face. “Perhaps I need to remove some of these trappings,” you pluck the black fabric between your fingers. Slowly, you slink the hem of your dress higher. Higher. His crimson eyes darting to watch your unfolding display.

“Might I be of… assistance?” He offers, honeyed tone even as he remains perfectly still.

A laugh leaks from your throat. “You may, only, don’t touch my skin just yet, Astarion. Soon you can, but not… now…”

You watch him rise slowly, licking his lips as you lean forward in the throne. His hands are slow, reverent as they catch up your hair to part it over one shoulder. The lacings at the back of your dress bared for him to attend. It’s deliberate, filled with care, his long fingers deftly pulling the bindings out, lace by lace. His touch is heavy, making certain you feel his every ministration through the fabric of your dress. His hands skate lower, ghosting over the silk to your waist, bunching the fabric to reveal your skin, to expose your shoulders and arms.

You turn your head to look at him, rising to your feet. “Finish the job, my love,” you order, keeping that edge to your voice. Hand raising to his cheek, you caress him, softly, slowly, running your hand down the column of his neck to press on his shoulder. He smiles at your touch, slinking back to his knees… looking up into your face as his hands ruck your skirts in his fists. Pulling, shimmying your skirts to reveal the bare pale flesh of your belly, your thighs.

You step from the puddle of fabric at your feet, closing right into the distance between you where he kneels. Your hands bury in his hair, pressing his eager face into your embrace. His lips caress you, sucking and licking into the soft center of your stomach. His voice hums low, reverberating into your flesh. “Such a reward for so little,” he whispers against your skin, “you can push me harder than that, darling…”

“Really…?” You purr, canting a brow, mischief rising within you. “You just be sure, my love to say when it is too much.”

“Like too much sugar in my tea, I’ll say when, I promise,” he chuckles, slow and languorous, his face creeping lower and lower until his tongue barely laps between your folds. His breath stirring in the soft curls of your mound.

“Then, darling, you can touch,” you step away, seating yourself back in his throne. The velvet lining cushions your bare skin, the metal cold and shocking to the touch. But you recline, the same posture he had assumed at your arrival. “Come and give me your worship, my love,” you toss at him, hearing his steps slowly round on you. His eyes glow with hunger, his teeth glinting as he smiles. He laughs, eyeing you as your thighs part for him to give you more.

His hands rest upon the tops of your legs, settled on his heels before your seat.

“Tch, tch,” you tut at him, brushing his palms from your skin. “Your tongue alone, darling,” you smirk, watching your command making him fairly salivate. “Since you insist on using it, it seems,” you feign disgust, wiping the trails of his saliva from your belly.

He laughs, lowering his kisses to where your hand just touched. “Yes, my love,” he clasps his hands behind his back, glancing up with eyes of red fire, making certain you saw his obedience. “It would be my… pleasure,” he growls, nose pressing into where you ache. You gasp, the demanding dart of his tongue between your folds sending an instant curl of heat in your belly. Attentive, aggressive, he growls into your thighs, and you watch the muscles of his forearms clenching behind his back.

With every lick, he pushes hard, struggling to get just where he wants.

“Something the matter?” you coo, sliding your hips closer to the edge of the chair.

“You could be helpful and master me, you know darling? Give me a little to gain a lot…”

Your hand slips between your legs, fingers spreading yourself wide after a few caresses of your own fingers deep into your channel. You hear his breathing heavy in his chest, watching every muscle in his body wind tight like a spring.

A predator who would love nothing more than to pounce and devour you to his satisfaction. But you pat him on the head, throwing one leg over the cool metal arm of the seat.

“Better?” you dare, your answer is nothing more than his tongue diving with all his hunger deep into your channel, lapping and circling your clit, fangs catching the edges of your folds. You feel it creeping up with each pass and swirl of his tongue. So close, that wave of heat. You can hear his voice rasping, breath heavy as he works inside you. “Touch me,” you order. “Do it, Astarion.”

Released, his hands are on you, everywhere all at once. His fingers claw into your sides, tugging your hips closer. You slide on the velvet aimed right for his hungry, devouring mouth. Long, strong, his fingers delve hard and fast into you as he sucks on your clit. He groans to feel you tighten on his hand, to feel your juices flowing, your back arching and hips bucking on the seat of his throne.

Your hands fist into his hair, pushing him away as he insists on lapping you through the very last wave of your orgasm. He trails his drenched tongue to the delicate inside of your thigh, tracing a circle over the spot he loves most. “Just a bite, darling? May I have some reward?”

“Just a bite,” you pant, still easing down from the writhing muscles, warmth releasing through you.

His fangs pierce your thigh, a moment of pain, quickly masked as he slips his fingers into you again, crooking and stroking your channel.

“That’s enough I think, for now,” you hum, gripping gently into his hair to lift his face. “I said a bite and just a bite it will be.”

He bares his teeth at you, the points of his fangs barely dipped in red. “Darling…” he pushes, voice barely more than a growl.

“Just for now…” you softly stroke his cheek, running the pad of your thumb over his trembling lower lip as he sneers. “Just until you make me come again…”

His lips sneer wider, twisting into a barely contained feral smirk. “As you wish,” he croons, “may I use all the… tools at hand?” His eyes glance down his own body, his hips shoving against the bottom of the chair.

You tilt your head, feigning consideration. “Not yet,” you sigh. “But you may kiss me, my love.”

The last thing you see before he pounces on you is that smirk that makes your heart rap against your ribs and sucks your breath from your lungs at its beauty. His knee shoves in beside you, his lips dancing and plying yours. The tip of his tongue darts between your lips, salt and tang from your blood, your cum, a heady concoction as he tangles it with yours.

One hand claws into your neck, trapping you, pinning you to his ravenous mouth.

Those fingers conjure magic inside you. Twisting and thrusting, sweeping through every ridge inside you just the way you like. It’s a dance, the darting of tongue timed in perfect rhythm with the pumping of his fingers and the scoring of his thumb on your clit. His humming, growling into your mouth. “Oh, so wet and tight, if only I could feel that same release…”

You smile into his kiss, your hand grazing lightly against the cool, clenching muscles of his chest. Stroking, scratching your nails down to the edge of his trousers, you barely brush over where his erection stretches against the straining fabric. Those hips buck into your palm, making you press against as much of his length as you can hold. He grinds into you, his breath heavier than ever, you can almost feel his cock hardening, tightening, his every movement chasing his own release. You ease your fingers away, stroking just a single finger over the edge of his waistband, feeling the soft skin of his seeping head bursting out the top.

“Me first, darling,” you breathe between his fangs. “Then, you’ll have to choose…” you graze your hand down your neck, “…feed…” You grab that bulging cock, gripping it between your thumb and finger to run hard over. He grunts, fingers stilling inside you at the delicious, painful pleasure, “…or fuck, my love.”

“But first,” he hums, fingers renewed as he lightly tugs you clit, “you come.” It isn’t an observation. It’s an order. He pinches you, hand gripped into your neck, holding you fast as you do rip in two, rent apart to shatter in his hand.

You gasp, panting, trying to strain and arch as you writhe in exquisite bliss. His hand stays you, pressing you to his shoulder, savoring the way you clutch your hands around his side, letting you shudder and clench until you are still at last. His breath rattles in your ear, for as relaxed and limp as you feel, his body writhes with his fervent need, bound and cramping with his unsated hunger. “Is it… my turn?” he hisses, teeth already scraping your neck, hands pawing your hair back to reveal that pale flesh he craves.

“Say please,” you give a single laugh, one you swallow the instant you feel his hands raking up your body, palming your breasts and plucking your straining nipples.

He swirls his tongue, bringing your breast into his mouth, one hard suck makes you instantly flush and writhing again. “Please,” he purrs around your nipple. Fire floods your veins, his lips and hands kneading you, molding you as he waits for your command.

All you can do is clutch your hands into those locks, cradling him softly, moaning your assent. “Yes, my good, good darling, yes.” You tilt your head again, waiting for his fangs to mark you, to claim his well-earned reward.

But the second you feel his low-throated chuckle on the top of your breast, you gasp, your breath burning in your lungs. Fangs slice into the sensitive softness, his fingers plucking and twirling your nipples even as he feeds from the blood that runs down into the valley of your chest.

He laps at you, greedily, famished, growling with little noises as he drinks from you, his consort. His love.

But you feel that power begin to shift, that possessive edge crawling under his skin with every suck of his lips and every clasp of his fingers around the fullness he caresses.

“Enough,” you whimper, hands pushing at the broadness of his shoulders. He resists, another long suck on your breast, licking at the blood that bathes it. “Don’t be greedy,” you hiss, finally getting him to raise his face from your skin, his eyes glowing, insufferable and provoking as he licks his bloodied lips with a smile.

“Yes… my treasure,” he fights to reply, struggling to find that restraint. You can see him gritting his teeth, concentrating on moving his body off of yours. His eyes spark, barely bridled power almost tickling your skin, but he manages to stand before you. Before where you sit, naked on his throne. He lets the sight fill him, his chest rising and falling as he breathes in your scent.

“You’re so good,” you purr, slowly rising to your feet, feeling that surge of desire, of power swirling under his skin, as you stand just an inch away from him. “And if you stay good, I might even let you free this…” You clutch at his erection, palming it with a twisted smirk. Savoring the grunt he makes as you run that grip over his confined length. “Yes, that’s it, my sweet, sweet lover…” You stand on the tips of your toes, craning to whisper right in his ear. “How badly do you want to come, my love?”

“More than anything,” he growls, turning his face sharply towards you. “I’d give anything for you…”

“Anything is a lot, you know…” You smile, running your hand over his cock until you feel him shiver under your touch. That’s when the thrill hits you, the control, the power he has given you. It’s… intoxicating, that restraint he gives only for you. That trust he shares only in you. The weight of that responsibility sobers you for a moment, and you break, reaching for his neck encircled in your arms, pulling him down into your lips for a kiss. “And I’d give anything for you too,” you breathe into your hungry mouth.

“Not getting soft on me, are you?” he growls into your mouth, hips bucking into your waist. But the slight softness in his eyes makes your heart thrill, a look of total affection. Of love, swirling behind that veil of domineering power.

“Wouldn’t dream of it, not when you’re as hard as you are, my love,” you purr arching against his body. He’s rigid, careful. Watching your every little movement as he breathes heavily under your touch. You stroke him, that soft fabric of his breeches straining at the seams to be released. Fingers slowly draw the laces out, one by one, your nails dragging sharply over his skin, as inch by inch, you let out that straining cock. As inch by inch, he grows harder, more ravenous, under your featherlight, scoring touch. You finally let him out, making him shuffle off the rest of his clothing until he’s nothing but skin and fangs and a ravenous smirk before you.

“Sit,” you grip him by his arms, spinning his frame as you shove him into his own throne. His eyes flicker in delighted surprise, shifting his body in anticipation for yours to join him.

“Yes, darling,” he croons, giving his ass a clench that makes his cock twitch and pulse. And you can’t look away. You want this, so badly, your entire body trembles for him inside you, that heady concoction of your lust for him and his unwavering trust in you goes right to your head, and to your loins.

You calculate your every move, every sway of your hips, the way you let your hands caress your curves, tracing your fingers into your folds. And you savor that way he licks his lips, his eyes glossy with his need, his hands clenched into the arms of his throne. “You’re trying so hard to be good,” you purr, tossing your hair down your back, crossing to slowly straddle him. You wrap your hands around his length, so hard, pale marble beneath your fingers. You give it a slow stroke, his lips twitching as he gives a groan of pleasure. “You deserve some pleasure for all you’ve done for me,” you lean against his chest, catching his lips in a shallow kiss. “But you’ll have to ask me nicely before you come… darling.”

Astarion whimpers, his lips baring his fangs as you raise your folds above that seeping head of his. Letting your slick just barely graze over him. “Please,” he groans, a swiveling thrust of his hips into you, one you avoid as he tries to sheath into your wetness.

“Not yet,” you tutt, teasing that blunted tip over your clit as you moan, eyes shutting as you make yourself the perfect picture of reckless abandon. A swivel of your hips, a nibble of your lip, as you tear his cock between your thighs. So silken and so hard, you groan with each sweep of him you make down your seam, each tantilizingly shallow dip you give of it into the clenching walls of your channel.

“Darling,” he groans, thrusting up into you, claiming just a little more traction into your cunt, “please… can’t I at least touch you?”

His eyes are wide, hands still clutching at the golden filigree of his throne. You can see every muscle in his neck taught and straining, balancing on the edge of his submission and his overwhelming need to fuck you.

“You may,” you moan, cupping his cheek, “but remember… you only come when I say… darling…”

His brows tweak, pained, but his hands rake up your arms, ghosting over your shoulders to cup your breasts. Even where your blood is drying yet.

You moan, the little teasing of his fingers making your honey drip even more over his shaft. It’s too much for you. So you sink onto that stiff and pulsing member. He bites his lip, clawing his fingers into your flesh, eyes half-lidded as he gives a muffled groan. His breathing is harsh. Unsteady. And you flash him a devious smile, just sitting on his lap, letting your belly stretch to fit that long length of his. “Shhh,” you wipe the sweat that’s formed on his pale brow, “wouldn’t want to have anything this sweet end so quickly.”

“Of course,” he pants. “Not when it’s so deliciously painful…” his brows furrow in agony.

“Oh, the pleasure will be…” you sigh heavily, “far greater than the pain…” his lips smirk as he hears his own words thrown back at him in your lustful voice. “Once I let you have that pleasure, of course…”

His hands tingle, featherlight as they skate up and and down your sides, he softly holds your arms, bringing them to his neck. Reverent, gentle, despite the inferno that rages behind his eyes. He places a kiss against your arm as you brace yourself on his shoulders. “Take your time, my treasure,” he groans as you treat him to a canting of your hips on his lap, “just don’t forget about me…”

“Never,” you groan, not at the way he fills you, but at how his arms wrap snugly around your waist. As if he can’t bring you any closer to him. You move, grinding up and down on him, riding that length as you look him square in the eyes. At how they glow, how they brim with unshed tears, so dilated and dark with his desire for you. At how the sweat begins to drip down his brows, his thin creases at the corners of his eyes deepening their grooves as he twists his face in relief. In the anticipation of his building pleasure.

But he barely blinks, that intensity boring into your soul. You bite your lips, riding the ridges of his cock through you, every sense of your body uniting with his as he gives you his everything. You can almost feel his ascended heart in his chest beating in yours.

Your fingers lock at the base of his neck, clawing into the silver tangles of his hair, even as it dampens with his sweat. You grind on him, keeping your pace agonizingly slow, his poor, neglected cock so hard and so thick, you know he’s not going to last long after what you’ve put him through.

But that only makes you smile harder, your breathing heavy between your grinning, slack lips.

“Hngf,” he groans as you give an extra hard slap of your cunt on him. “Please, my love,” he pants, nearly drooling with his unquenched lust. “You’ve had some fun…”

“Oh, just a little more,” you moan, “you wouldn’t deny me a little more fun, would you, my love?” You give a breathless laugh, reaching your hand around beneath you to grip those smooth, tight balls of his in your palm.

You feel him twitching inside you, his manhood in your palm so hard and tight. Ready to burst. After all, he has been good.

You look at his face, strained and red and sweating. You watch the way he can’t control his mouth, his tongue darting haphazardly over his teeth to lick his lips. His hips beneath you buck at random, hitching out of rhythm with how you ride his shaft. He has never been more handsome, your pleasure wave cresting at the mere sight of his unraveling.

“Please, please darling,” he’s panting, hand gripping so hard on your hips as you gyrate, you know he’s drawn blood. “You’re so good, so tight and wet. Please, let me come…”

You say nothing for a moment, letting your ears fill with the wet slap of your cunt on him. He begs you again, louder, his groans hurtling you into your own climax. You writhe. “Yes, darling,” you moan arching away from his chest. “Yes you may.”

His eyes go wide with your release, the centers so wide, so feral and unbridled. He shifts his ass to the edge, legs braced on the floor. Bouncing you, spearing you. Just that wild, growling, snapping desire is enough to shove you into orgasm. Every muscle grips around him deep inside you. You scream, pleasure tearing through you, but he doesn’t ease his pace.

No you’ve released him from his binds, set him free to fuck until he’s done. So you ride, you jounce, as he begins to hitch his pace. Arms clutch around your body, trapping you, supporting you as your own frame threatens to go limp in the aftershocks of your orgasm.

Astarion careens into you. “Thank you,” he moans, over and over again. His breathing rasps, fast and hot in your ear. Deafening you. Overstimulating you, making your neck and spine twitch as he slams into you over again. With one last grunt, the loudest of all, he fills you, the heat of his cum spurting and slipping out from your folds. “Thank you, darling…” he rests his head on your shoulder, an edge within him easing, slipping away.

Dissipating.

Dulling.

And then you feel him breathe. You can feel his heart beating into you as he holds you so tight.

Nothing but his absolute love, his submission, a pulsing rhythm between you. “That was…” he sighs, his breath cascading down your front.

“Delicious?” you offer, stroking your fingers through the damp curls of his silver hair.

He looks up slowly, eyes soft, that same subtle smile that you would see from before, the one that would play around his lips when it was just you two in those fleeting moments on the road. Those moments that made you both who you were. Just you and your rogue. “Precisely,” he purrs, catching your lips delicately in a kiss. “So delicious, I’m sure I’ll need another sampling…”

His kiss turns on the edge of a knife, consuming, tearing. All fangs and tongue in your mouth.

“Tut, tut,” you press your hands against his chest. “If you insist, then at least let me take you somewhere more.. comfortable. Somewhere I might spread you out… tie you up, for once.”

“Oh, darling,” he pouts his swollen lips with a langurous lick, “how could I say no?”

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Thank you for the reblogs, likes, kudos, and comments 🥰. You are truly all darlings!

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House of the Dragon 2x04: Quotes

"- Perhaps you might place a feather pillow over his head and speed along your inheritance? I can see why the Blackwoods and the Brackens did not fear to start a war beneath the nose of their liege lords. House Tully is a fish with no head. Remind me which of your countrymen claim to fight in the name of Aegon? Was it was it Bracken or Blackwood? (Daemon) - It was House Bracken that declared Green, Your Grace. (Simon Strong) - Who could remember. Summon the Blackwoods here. I require men of action to lead my host of Rivermen." (Daemon)

"- What do we know, my prince? (Jace) - If you ask me, it is little and less. (Ser Alfred) - Can Daemon hope to meet it with his own in time? (Lord Celtigar) - And if know the Riverlands, he has more disentangling ahead of him than the end of a Lyseni orgy."

"- "kingmaker." You are not fit for the white cloak." (Lord Darklyn) - This is a better death than a traitor deserves. (Ser Criston) - Yours will come in kind. (Lord Darklyn)

"- It's like to drive Daemon to madness as he attempts to make use of it. It is beyond his faculties. It is also penniless, as I happily control all of its gold." (Larys Strong)

"- Rhaenyra's supporters will believe what they wish. And so will Aegon's. The war will be fought, many will die... and the victor will eventually ascend the throne. The significance of Viserys's intentions died with him. (Alicent) - Yes, it did." (Larys)

"- Harrenhal's been cursed since its first stone was laid. Black Harren felled the grove of weirwood trees that grew on these lands. Heart trees, imbued with the spirits of those who lived long before he came. It's said their whispers can still be heard sometimes. (Alys) - A midwife's tale. (Daemon) - The very bed you sleep in was made from such a heart tree. Have you experienced anything... of note? (Alys) - You are a strange kind of woman. (Daemon) - I'm no woman at all. I'm a barn owl. Cursed to live in human form. So, you've come here after quarreling with your wife? (Alys) - What? (Daemon) - You arrive here alone to claim the castle and yet, send no ravens. Do you now plan to make your own claim? Perhaps to prove yourself to her. (Alys) - Do not try me with your insolence, witch. (Daemon) - It's a hard thing, I imagine, to give obeisance to one who replaced you as heir. And a woman too. A... girl child you bounced on your knee. I mean, does it please you that her legitimacy is contested? As you stand here... with a castle and a dragon... attempting to draw an army of men. Here. Drink this. You'll need your sleep if you're to win this place to your side." (Alys)

"- I once vied for Queen Rhaenyra's hand... before she wed Ser Laenor. I always liked her spirit. She had the true blood of the dragon." (Ser Willem Blackwood)

"- Perhaps Ser Criston will be able to procure more livestock through his campaign. (Grand Maester Orwyle) - Any coin we can save will be a welcome bounty." (Ser Tyland Lannister)

"- What are you doing here? (Aegon II) - Where are your father's books? (Alicent) - I ordered them removed. (Aegon II) - With no thought to the centuries of knowledge in those pages. (Alicent) - I removed them, I didn't burn them." (Aegon II)

"- Even my thoughts. (Aegon II) - What thoughts would you have? (Alicent) - Wh... I'm the king. (Aegon II) - Do you think simply wearing the crown imbues you with wisdom? Those men at your council table... earned their seats. I was my hope that once enthroned, you would honor the burden of your new duties, be silent, and strive to learn from more studied minds around you. In the hope that you might be half the king your father was. (Alicent) - Tread carefully. (Aegon II) - Or what? You'll hang me, as you did your ratcatchers? Or have me banished, as you did your Hand? I ruled in your father's absence throughout his long illness, and Otto Hightower was as cunning a statesman as ever lived. You should humbly be seeking our opinions and counsel. You have no idea the sacrifices that were made to put you on that throne. (Alicent) - What would you have me do, Mother? (Aegon) - Do simply what is needed of you: nothing." (Alicent)

"- Are you afraid, Ser? (Ser Criston) - Worse. I'm rational." (Ser Gwayne Hightower)

"- I inherited 80 years of peace from my father. Before I was to end it, I needed to know that there was no other path. And now I do. Only one choice remains to me: either I win my claim or die. We stand at the ready. These are those who have mistaken my caution for weakness. Let that be their undoing. I will go. (Rhaenyra) - My queen... You cannot. (Jace) - I will not lose dragons to war whilst I hide here in my castle. (Rhaenyra) - Our allies raise their banners for you, Mother. Yes, they do. If you die, all is lost. Send me. (Jace) - No. (Rhaenyra) - Could even raise the alarm. (Jace) - You lack the experience." (Rhaenyra) "- The horrors I have just l have just loosed cannot be for a crown alone." (Rhaenyra)

[jesus-is-lord-and-savior]

1 Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous! Praise befits the upright.

2 Give thanks to the LORD with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!

3 Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

4 For the word of the LORD is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.

5 He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.

6 By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.

7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses.

8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

9 For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

10 The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

11 The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.

12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!

13 The LORD looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man;

14 from where he sits enthroned he looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth,

15 he who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds.

16 The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.

17 The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.

18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,

19 that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.

21 For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name.

22 Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.

(Psalms 33, ESV)

[walkswithmyfather]

Isaiah 40:11-26. “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?

Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor? Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge, or showed him the path of understanding?

Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing.

With whom, then, will you compare God? To what image will you liken him? As for an idol, a metalworker casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and fashions silver chains for it. A person too poor to present such an offering selects wood that will not rot; they look for a skilled worker to set up an idol that will not topple.

Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

“To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.” (NIV“The Greatness of God” By In Touch Ministries:“We can't even begin to comprehend the awesome majesty and power of our Lord.”“When you think of God, what comes to mind? Often, we tend to view Him in the way that best fits our particular need or situation. For example, if we struggle with guilt, we might focus on His forgiveness. The truth is, His character encompasses far more than we could ever comprehend or try to explain. Even if we had all the time in the world, we wouldn’t be able to do more than scratch the surface of how awesome He is. But today, let’s look at one attribute: His greatness. Today’s passage tells us God is greater than creation (v. 12), for it was by His hands that everything we see came into being. He is higher than the nations or any idol fashioned by the finest craftsman (vv. 17-20). In fact, God is above the world and all mankind (vv. 22-23), surpassing even the heavens and galaxies. Our Father’s thoughts and ways are far grander than our own (Isa. 55:9)—and lofty, compared with what we can understand. Psalm 93:1 says, “The Lord reigns, He is clothed with majesty; the Lord has clothed and encircled Himself with strength.” Consider the awesome God we serve. He truly is worthy of our praise. As we grasp even a fraction of His greatness, our response should be one of humble worship. After all, who are we that a God like this would desire our friendship—so much so that He sent His Son to die for our sins?”

Isaiah 40:11-26. “He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor? Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge, or showed him the path of understanding? Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust. Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires, nor its animals enough for burnt offerings. Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing.With whom, then, will you compare God? To what image will you liken him? As for an idol, a metalworker casts it, and a goldsmith overlays it with gold and fashions silver chains for it. A person too poor to present such an offering selects wood that will not rot; they look for a skilled worker to set up an idol that will not topple.Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.“To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.” (NIV)

“The Greatness of God” By In Touch Ministries:

“We can't even begin to comprehend the awesome majesty and power of our Lord.”

“When you think of God, what comes to mind? Often, we tend to view Him in the way that best fits our particular need or situation. For example, if we struggle with guilt, we might focus on His forgiveness. The truth is, His character encompasses far more than we could ever comprehend or try to explain. Even if we had all the time in the world, we wouldn’t be able to do more than scratch the surface of how awesome He is. But today, let’s look at one attribute: His greatness. Today’s passage tells us God is greater than creation (v. 12), for it was by His hands that everything we see came into being. He is higher than the nations or any idol fashioned by the finest craftsman (vv. 17-20). In fact, God is above the world and all mankind (vv. 22-23), surpassing even the heavens and galaxies. Our Father’s thoughts and ways are far grander than our own (Isa. 55:9)—and lofty, compared with what we can understand. Psalm 93:1 says, “The Lord reigns, He is clothed with majesty; the Lord has clothed and encircled Himself with strength.” Consider the awesome God we serve. He truly is worthy of our praise. As we grasp even a fraction of His greatness, our response should be one of humble worship. After all, who are we that a God like this would desire our friendship—so much so that He sent His Son to die for our sins?”

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Why Have You Forsaken Me?

To the choirmaster: according to The Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3 Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. 4 In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. 5 To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame. 6 But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. 7 All who see me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; 8 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him!” 9 Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother's breasts. 10 On you was I cast from my birth, and from my mother's womb you have been my God. 11 Be not far from me, for trouble is near, and there is none to help. 12 Many bulls encompass me; strong bulls of Bashan surround me; 13 they open wide their mouths at me, like a ravening and roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; 15 my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. 16 For dogs encompass me; a company of evildoers encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet— 17 I can count all my bones— they stare and gloat over me; 18 they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots. 19 But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid! 20 Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog! 21 Save me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen! 22 I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you: 23 You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him, and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel! 24 For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him. 25 From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will perform before those who fear him. 26 The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord! May your hearts live for ever! 27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. 28 For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations. 29 All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship; before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, even the one who could not keep himself alive. 30 Posterity shall serve him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; 31 they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it. — Psalm 22 | English Standard Version Anglicised (ESVUK) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Anglicised Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Cross References: Numbers 10:32; Deuteronomy 10:21; Joshua 2:11; 2 Kings 14:26; 1 Chronicles 5:20; Job 16:10; Job 25:6; Psalm 17:10; Psalm 22:11; Psalm 24:4; Psalm 35:18; Psalm 40:9; Psalm 40:16; Psalm 42:3; Psalm 71:5-6; Psalm 99:6; Psalm 102:18; Isaiah 46:3; Matthew 6:13; Matthew 27:35; Matthew 27:39; Matthew 27:43; Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:24; Luke 21:20; Luke 23:27; John 19:20; Philippians 3:2; 2 Timothy 4:17; Hebrews 2:12; Hebrews 5:7; Revelation 19:5

[apenitentialprayer]

Christ Enthroned in the Believer's Heart and Venerated by Angels, engraving by Anton Wierix, late 16th Century.

Sovereign Lord, raise Your throne in our hearts. Created by You, let us live in Your Image; created for You, let us act for Your glory; redeemed by You, let us give You what is Yours; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Collect for the Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost

[orthodoxadventure]

Psalm 22 (NKJV)

My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning? O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and am not silent.

But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them. They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.

But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, “He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”

But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts. I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother’s womb You have been My God. Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is none to help.

Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion.

I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death.

For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me. They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.

But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me! Deliver Me from the sword, My precious life from the power of the dog. Save Me from the lion’s mouth And from the horns of the wild oxen!

You have answered Me.

I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You. You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel! For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard.

My praise shall be of You in the great assembly; I will pay My vows before those who fear Him. The poor shall eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever!

All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations Shall worship before You. For the kingdom is the Lord’s, And He rules over the nations.

All the prosperous of the earth Shall eat and worship; All those who go down to the dust Shall bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep himself alive.

A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation, They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That He has done this.

[scotianostra]

On 12th February 1424 James I married Lady Joan Beaufort.

The marriage was part of the agreement around the release of James I from English captivity, with this union to an English noblewoman designed to encourage good relations between in England and Scotland. Although this was a political union, it has been convincingly argued that it was also a union of hearts. James I and Joan were a formidable royal team, but arguably Joan’s importance has been underestimated.

Joan was crowned alongside James I in the abbey church at Scone on Sunday 21st May 1424, before the king undertook the traditional Scottish enthronement ritual outside on Moot Hill.

The crowning of a queen alongside her husband was not then the usual practice and had not been seen in Scotland since the betrothal of Prince David and Joan Plantagenet (both children) in 1328. The ceremonial role of the queen consort in Scotland was developing through the fourteenth century. Elizabeth de Burgh, wife of Robert I, has a rather ambiguous role and appeared to have no ceremony to mark her rise in status from noblewoman to queen consort in the early fourteenth century, in my own opinion this could be explained by the fact we were still embroiled in the first war of Independence for the vast majority of their marriage.

By 1390, Annabella Drummond, wife of Robert III, was crowned on a separate day, following her husband’s coronation ceremony. However, none of her predecessors were physically crowned next to the king.

Ceremonies of queenship in Scotland in this era were still negotiated rituals, and this reflected the position of the queen in the political and royal sphere of influence. From the moment that James I and Joan were crowned alongside each other in 1424, James immediately and publicly positioned his queen at his side as the second person of the realm in a manner not found in earlier Scottish royal unions. This visual ceremonial act was then emphasised in subsequent actions taken by James. For example, the Records of the Parliament of Scotland evidence that James would only proceed with the renewal of the Franco-Scottish alliance in 1428 with the ‘firm and secure support of our beloved consort Queen’. Joan and key nobles also acted as intercessory agents on behalf of the disgraced Alexander, Lord of the Isles, in 1429 in a stage-managed event designed to allow the king to take a hard line and then offer a merciful compromise on the advice of good counsel. It is also important to note that, although accompanied by male figures, Joan’s performative acts of intercession are the first of a queen recorded in Scotland.

Another notable innovation for Joan came in James’ insistence that the political estates swore oaths of fealty to Joan in a General Council of 1428 and again in 1435. These oaths in the parliamentary record state that nobles and prelates risked their lands, titles and position in society if they refused to offer allegiance to the queen. This would become something that later kings of Scots would draw example from, but there is no evidence that it occurred for Joan’s predecessors. These were not the only innovations made by James, and certainly not the only thing that he was criticised for, but it was a significant shift from previous norms as far as records can show.

James I and Joan also planned a shared mausoleum in the Carthusian Charterhouse at Perth to cement their bond in death. The necrology of the Carthusian General Chapter, which chronicled the deaths of members of the community and its patrons, lists the death of Joan  as 15th July 1445. Here Joan is recorded as fundatrix – a title emphasising her shared role in the founding of the religious house in which they were buried. 

The couple were both accorded the benefits of being recorded in the order’s calendar and this would have brought them intercessory prayers from the austere religious communities of Carthusians across Europe. Although the tomb and building do not survive, the overt projection of Joan by James as the second person of the realm gives solid foundations to the argument for a joint tomb marking their unified royal authority even in death. You’ll find a bit more on this at the link below.

Favouring Queen Joan in this manner certainly caused some tensions within the political community. Yet, these very tensions emphasised that there was strength in Joan’s political position and made her, if not control, of the subsequent transferal of power from father to son at James’ death in 1437 ever more probable

The image shows James with Joan Beaufort, Queen of Scotland from the Foreman Rolls (16th century). He has the coat of arms of Scotland on his tabard and is holding a sword and scepter, while she has the coat of arms of England on her clothing, and is holding a scepter and thistle.

[albertfinch]

THE FAITH DECREE OF GOD'S WILL

The disciples asked Him, "Lord, teach us to pray" (Luke 11:1). In response, the Lord gave them a prayer, not just to help them cope, but something that was militant in nature. This was more than a prayer – it was a proclamation.

For centuries the holy realities of the Lord's prayer have been obscured by traditions of religious unbelief, as though ritualistically repeating this prayer would provide access to Heaven when the supplicant died. The deception was that somehow all Jesus was speaking of was off in eternity, as though this prayer was disbarred from affecting conditions on earth.

"Thy Kingdom come! Thy will be done!"

These are emphatic statements. They ought to be punctuated with exclamation marks. This prayer is Heaven's "Pledge of Allegiance."

This prayer is a faith-decree that God's will, through our living union with Christ, should be accomplished today on earth. Where is the room for compromise in those words? Jesus is saying that, with miraculous power, abounding joy and unwavering mercy, God's will is destined to be fulfilled on earth just "as it is in Heaven"!

We call this The Lord's Prayer, yet more appropriately, it might be called the Disciple's Prayer or the Kingdom Prayer, for it is something Jesus gave to ignite fire in the hearts of His followers. Indeed, this prayer is revolutionary.

THE LORD'S PRAYER IS A PROPHETIC PRAYER

The Lord's prayer is not a weak, pleading prayer. Yes, there is a time for pleading with God, but this is prophetic prayer. There is not a please anywhere in it.

We already know it is the "Father's good pleasure" to give us His Kingdom (Luke 12:32 NKJV). Jesus is not instructing us to beg for a blessing or two; He is commanding us to call for God's Kingdom to rule on earth, in our very lives and circumstances.

This is a prayer of authority. The Son of God wants us to pray like we were created to bring Heaven to earth. Our prayer simply aligns us with what is already God's great pleasure to give us.

This is the prayer of those fully committed to the vision of God! It embodies the expanse of what Jesus came to establish.

 He didn't say this prayer should be prayed only when we have become perfect. No. He was saying this is how we should pray right now, even while we are imperfect. Yet, we must learn to pray with unsheathed spiritual authority, with heroic faith, and with the fire of divine possibilities burning in our souls.

 "Thy Kingdom come" arises from within the inner spirit of the redeemed.

Even now, lightening-like power is filling the backbones of the redeemed. Believers stand upright before the Most High. In their mouths are the words taught them by the Son of God Himself: "Thy Kingdom come! Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven!"

LIVING IN HEAVEN'S ACTIVITIES

Matthew 6:9  -  Pray, therefore, like this:  Our Father Who is in heaven, hallowed (kept holy) be Your name.

          Hallowed means respected or revered.  This is an expression of praise.  Praise and worship are the primary activities of heaven.  And so it is to be for the believer here on earth.  The more we live as citizens of heaven, the more heaven's activities infect our lifestyles.  Worship is our number one priority.  Everything else we do is to be affected by our devotion to this call.

Psalm 22:3  -  But you are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel.

          God responds with a literal invasion of heaven to earth through the worship of the believer.  God responds to the praises of His people as mentioned in Isaiah 42:13 --"He shall go forth like a mighty man; he shall stir up his  zeal like a man of war. He shall cry out, Yes, shout aloud; he shall prevail against his enemies."

FAITH IS SPECIFIC AND FOCUSED

Matthew 6:10  -  Your Kingdom come .  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

         This is the primary focus for all prayer -- If it exists in heaven, it is to be "loosed" on earth.  It's the praying Christian who "looses" heaven's expression here.  When the believer prays according to the revealed will of God, faith is specific and focused.  Faith grabs hold of that reality.  Enduring faith doesn't let go.  Such an invasion causes the circumstances here to line up with heaven.

If it is not free to exist in heaven, it must be "bound" here -- Through prayer we are to exercise the authority given to us.  Everything that happens here is supposed to be a shadow of heaven.  In turn, every revelation that God gives us of Heaven is to equip us with a prayer focus.

Matthew 16:19  -  I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven. (NAS)

          The phrase "shall have been" implies that we can only bind or loose here what has already been bound or loosed there -- heaven is our model.

Matthew 6:11  -  Give us this day our daily bread.

          Is any one starving in heaven?  Heaven sets the standard for a Christian's material world -- enough to satisfy the desires born of God and enough "for every good work."  Our legal basis for provision comes from the heavenly model given to us in Christ Jesus:  "And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  According to what?  His riches. Where? In glory.  Heaven's resources are to affect us here and now.

2 Corintinans 9:8  -  "And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need, be self-sufficient  -  possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation."

Matthew 6:12  -  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

          Is there any unforgiveness in heaven?  Heaven provides the model for our relationships here on earth.  "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.  Therefore be imitators of God as dear children" (Eph. 4:32 & 5:1).  These verses make it quite clear that our model is Jesus Christ........the One ascended to the right hand of the Father.......the One whose kingdom we seek.  Once again this prayer illustrates a practical way to pray for heaven's reality to bring an effect on planet earth.

Matthew 6:13  -  And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

           There is no temptation or sin in heaven.  This prayer does not imply that God wants to tempt us.  We know from James 1:13 that it is impossible for God to entice us to sin.  This kind of praying is important because it requires us to face our need for grace.  It helps us to align our heart with heaven -- one of absolute dependency on God.  The phrase "deliver us from evil", as it is traditionally rendered, actually means, "deliver us from the evil one."  A heart modeled after heaven has great success in spiritual warfare.  Jesus was able to say, "satan has nothing in me."  The believer is to be completely free from all satanic influence and attachments.  That is the cry voiced in this prayer.

James 4:7  -  So be subject to God.  Resist the devil (stand firm against him), and he will flee from you.

Matthew 6:13  -  For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.

                 The kingdom of God is His possession, which is why He alone can give it to us.  When we declare that reality we move into declarations of praise!  The Lord's prayer has two main objectives: (1) Minister to God out of an intimate personal relationship; and (2) bring the reality of His rulership (The Kingdom) to earth.

ALBERT FINCH MINISTRY

[shammah8]

The Poison of Pride

The LORD detests all the proud of heart.

Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.

PROVERBS 16:5

The pride that God loathes is not a healthy self-respect or a legitimate sense of personal dignity. It is the haughty, undue self-esteem out of all proportion to our actual worth. It is the repugnant egotism that is repulsive to both man and God. It is that revolting conceit which swaggers before men and struts in the presence of the Almighty. And God hates it.

Pride may take various forms. Spiritual pride trusts in one’s own virtue rather than in the grace of God. Intellectual pride gives its possessor self-confidence rather than God-confidence. Pride in material things enthrones self and displaces God; secondary things are exalted to the place of first importance. Social pride manifests itself in arroganceand status. All forms of pride emanate from the haughty human heart, and pride is the sin that God hates most.

What can you do about it? Confess your pride. Humble yourself in the sight of God. Look then at Christ, who “humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:8).☕️B Graham

[ongolecharles]

DAILY SCRIPTURE READINGS (DSR) 📚 Group, Sun July 07th, 2024 ... The Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B

Reading 1

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Ez 2:2-5

As the LORD spoke to me, the spirit entered into me

and set me on my feet,

and I heard the one who was speaking say to me:

Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites,

rebels who have rebelled against me;

they and their ancestors have revolted against me to this very day.

Hard of face and obstinate of heart

are they to whom I am sending you.

But you shall say to them: Thus says the LORD GOD!

And whether they heed or resist—for they are a rebellious house—

they shall know that a prophet has been among them.

Responsorial Psalm

---------------

Ps 123:1-2, 2, 3-4

R. (2cd) Our eyes are fixed on the Lord, pleading for his mercy.

To you I lift up my eyes

who are enthroned in heaven —

As the eyes of servants

are on the hands of their masters.

R. Our eyes are fixed on the Lord, pleading for his mercy.

As the eyes of a maid

are on the hands of her mistress,

So are our eyes on the LORD, our God,

till he have pity on us.

R. Our eyes are fixed on the Lord, pleading for his mercy.

Have pity on us, O LORD, have pity on us,

for we are more than sated with contempt;

our souls are more than sated

with the mockery of the arrogant,

with the contempt of the proud.

R. Our eyes are fixed on the Lord, pleading for his mercy.

Reading 2

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2 Cor 12:7-10

Brothers and sisters:

That I, Paul, might not become too elated,

because of the abundance of the revelations,

a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan,

to beat me, to keep me from being too elated.

Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me,

but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you,

for power is made perfect in weakness.”

I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,

in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.

Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults,

hardships, persecutions, and constraints,

for the sake of Christ;

for when I am weak, then I am strong.

Alleluia

--------

Cf. Lk 4:18

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

for he sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

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Mk 6:1-6

Jesus departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples.

When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue,

and many who heard him were astonished.

They said, “Where did this man get all this?

What kind of wisdom has been given him?

What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!

Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary,

and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon?

And are not his sisters here with us?”

And they took offense at him.

Jesus said to them,

“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place

and among his own kin and in his own house.”

So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there,

apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.

He was amazed at their lack of faith.

***

FOCUS AND LITURGY OF THE WORD

Hard of face and obstinate of heart are they to whom I am sending you.

Jesus’ rejection in today’s Gospel Reading was not a one-time occurrence.  Saint John the Evangelist states this same unfortunate truth, but in a different way.  About Jesus, St. John writes:  “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world knew Him not.  He came to His own home, and His own people received Him not” [ John 1:10-11].

Throughout the three years of Jesus’ public ministry, He was frequently rejected as a prophet.  Each of those rejections foreshadows the ultimate rejection of Jesus on Mount Calvary:  the rejection of Jesus as the Messiah, the one who came to save us from our sins.

After Jesus is rejected “in His native place and among His own kin”, the evangelist concludes with these observations:  “He was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying His hands on them.  He was amazed at their lack of faith.”

There are some people who use these last two sentences to deny that Jesus is God.  They argue that if Jesus were truly God, He would have been able to perform miracles in today’s Gospel passage.  Or to put it another way:  if the crowd’s lack of faith is greater than Jesus’ power to work miracles, then Jesus cannot possibly be the omnipotent God of the Bible.

 

We need to reflect upon this tension between the crowd’s lack of faith and Jesus’ lack of miracles.  We need to reflect upon this tension not just for the sake of understanding this particular Scripture passage, but also for the sake of our own spiritual lives.  Many Christians struggle because in the course of their earthly lives, they don’t see God responding to their most dire needs.  Some of these Christians give up their search for an answer.  Either they give up on God and leave the Church, or they give up on themselves, leading to despair or even death.

We know by instinct that the crowd’s lack of faith is not greater than Jesus’ power to work miracles.  But God chooses not to work miracles where there is a lack of faith.  We might say that God the Father made a “gentleman’s agreement” with Himself when He decided to send His Son to earth to become human.  He made a rule that He committed Himself always to abide by:  that is, never to over-ride human free will.

In the face of what can seem like God’s silence or lack of care about the many shades of darkness within life on earth, there are three plain facts that each of us needs to accept.

First, each of us needs to trust more deeply in God’s Providential will.  To say that God’s divine will is providential means that while God never directly causes evil, He does permit it.  He allows the world we live in to be as dark as it is because that darkness is the price to be paid for human free will.  It might be simpler if God were to remove that freedom and make all things right in the world.  But without that freedom, no one would have the chance to become like God and enter Heaven.

Second, each of us needs to grow in faith in God’s love for oneself personally.  Each of us needs to have the faith that the crowds in today’s Gospel passage lacked.  Each of us needs to believe that God sends His love to us in humble forms, especially in humble opportunities to love Him.  Nevertheless, as much as He chooses to love you, He also chooses not to force you to love Him.

Third, God demands that your faith be purified.  This is not the same as growing in faith.  Growing in faith is what you do by choosing to believe.  But this third plain fact is what God does.  God wants actively to purify your faith:  to sift it so as to remove the chaff.  Part of this sifting is helping us separate our wants from our needs.  Another part removes consolations in prayer so that our faith grows deeper.  This sifting calls us to adore God more than we petition Him, and to love Him for Who He truly is, instead of who we want Him to be.

***

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[wisdomfish]

God is always sufficient

In this world believers are slandered (Psalm 120), catastrophe looms (Psalm 124), saints are scorned (Psalm 123), injustice threatens to reign (Psalm 125), tears flow (Psalm 126), and sin engulfs (Psalm 130). But God is always sufficient, and the hope of home is always present. ~  Mark Loughridge

Psalm 120

A Song of Ascents. In my distress I cry to the Lord,   that he may answer me: ‘Deliver me, O Lord,   from lying lips,   from a deceitful tongue.’

What shall be given to you?   And what more shall be done to you,   you deceitful tongue? A warrior’s sharp arrows,   with glowing coals of the broom tree!

Woe is me, that I am an alien in Meshech,   that I must live among the tents of Kedar. Too long have I had my dwelling   among those who hate peace. I am for peace;   but when I speak,   they are for war.

Psalm 123

A Song of Ascents. To you I lift up my eyes,   O you who are enthroned in the heavens! As the eyes of servants   look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid   to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God,   until he has mercy upon us.

Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us,   for we have had more than enough of contempt. Our soul has had more than its fill   of the scorn of those who are at ease,   of the contempt of the proud.

Psalm 124

A Song of Ascents. Of David. If it had not been the Lord who was on our side   —let Israel now say— if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,   when our enemies attacked us, then they would have swallowed us up alive,   when their anger was kindled against us; then the flood would have swept us away,   the torrent would have gone over us; then over us would have gone   the raging waters.

Blessed be the Lord,   who has not given us   as prey to their teeth. We have escaped like a bird   from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken,   and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,   who made heaven and earth.

Psalm 125

A Song of Ascents. Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,   which cannot be moved, but abides for ever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem,   so the Lord surrounds his people,   from this time on and for evermore. For the sceptre of wickedness shall not rest   on the land allotted to the righteous, so that the righteous may not stretch out   their hands to do wrong. Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,   and to those who are upright in their hearts. But those who turn aside to their own crooked ways   the Lord will lead away with evildoers.   Peace be upon Israel!

Psalm 126

A Song of Ascents. When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,   we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter,   and our tongue with shouts of joy; then it was said among the nations,   ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’ The Lord has done great things for us,   and we rejoiced.

Restore our fortunes, O Lord,   like the watercourses in the Negeb. May those who sow in tears   reap with shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping,   bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy,   carrying their sheaves.

Psalm 130

A Song of Ascents. Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.   Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive   to the voice of my supplications!

If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,   Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you,   so that you may be revered.

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,   and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord   more than those who watch for the morning,   more than those who watch for the morning.

O Israel, hope in the Lord!   For with the Lord there is steadfast love,   and with him is great power to redeem. It is he who will redeem Israel   from all its iniquities.

[anastpaul]

23 June – Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the Home

23 June – The Octave Day of the Sacred Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ Consecrating the Family to the Sacred Heart Excerpt – Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the HomeBy Father Joseph Husslein SJ (1873-1952) Imprimatur 1917 “My desire is to reign through My Heart,” our Divine Lord said to St Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690), “I shall bestow abundant graces on the houses where the image of…

[walkswithmyfather]

Psalm 55:1-23 (AMP). “Listen to my prayer, O God, And do not hide Yourself from my plea. Listen to me and answer me; I am restless and distraught in my complaint and distracted Because of the voice of the enemy, Because of the pressure of the wicked; For they bring down trouble on me, And in anger they persecute me. My heart is in anguish within me, And the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling have come upon me; Horror has overwhelmed me. And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. I would wander far away, I would lodge in the [peace of the] wilderness. Selah. I would hurry to my refuge [my tranquil shelter far away] From the stormy wind and from the tempest.”

Confuse [my enemies], O Lord, divide their tongues [destroying their schemes], For I have seen violence and strife in the city. Day and night they go around her walls; Wickedness and mischief are in her midst. Destruction is within her; Oppression and deceit do not depart from her streets and market places. For it is not an enemy who taunts me— Then I could bear it; Nor is it one who has hated me who insolently exalts himself against me— Then I could hide from him. But it is you, a man my equal and my counsel, My companion and my familiar friend; We who had sweet fellowship together, Who walked to the house of God in company. Let death come deceitfully upon them; Let them go down alive to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead), For evil [of every kind] is in their dwelling and in their hearts, in their midst.

As for me, I shall call upon God, And the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will complain and murmur, And He will hear my voice. He has redeemed my life in peace from the battle that was against me, For there were many against me. God will hear and humble them, Even He who sits enthroned from old— Selah. Because in them there has been no change [of heart], And they do not fear God [at all]. He [my companion] has put out his hands against those who were at peace with him; He has broken his covenant [of friendship and loyalty]. The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, But his heart was hostile; His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords.

Cast your burden on the Lord [release it] and He will sustain and uphold you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken (slip, fall, fail). But You, O God, will bring down the wicked to the pit of destruction; Men of blood and treachery will not live out half their days. But I will [boldly and unwaveringly] trust in You.”

“God Is Our Sustainer” By In Touch Ministries:

“Our loving heavenly Father invites us to bring our burdens to Him and accept the strength He offers.”

“If you’ve ever carried something very heavy, you probably remember the feeling of relief when you could finally put it down. Perhaps you were even able to hand it off to a stronger, more capable person. Of course, not all burdens are physical. In fact, emotional or spiritual burdens often feel heavier and more impossible than tangible ones. In today’s psalm, David was weighed down with many woes and worries, and we all can undoubtedly identify with his desire to “fly away and be at rest” (v. 6).

No matter what form our challenges take, we must not forget that every circumstance in life is lovingly sifted through our Father’s fingers before reaching His children. From the Lord’s perspective, those things that seem to be too much for us are opportunities to learn dependence on Him. God never intends for any of us to carry a burden alone. Rather, He tells us to give it to Him (v. 22) and promises to see us through challenging times—no matter what. Casting your cares upon God means releasing them fully into His control and allowing Him to be your “place of refuge from the stormy wind and heavy gale” (v. 8).”

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Precious is the help of the Holy Spirit by John C. Bliss

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you” – John 14:26

How imperfect is our apprehension of things heavenly, and how defective our recollection of them! Poor scholars are we in God’s school, with our slow learning and quick forgetting if left to ourselves. Most precious then is our Lord’s assurance of the help of the Holy Spirit, so that we shall not fail to attain and retain that knowledge of his teachings which is vital to the welfare and peace of our souls, and which enthrones him in our hearts.

How cheering also the thought of the completeness of the Spirit’s teaching—covering the “all things” of Christ, as twice declared in this one verse. So large is his love for us that he can never be content with anything small in his treatment of us. Thus taught by the Holy Ghost, we shall choose truth rather than error, and ever delight therein. Having clearly and constantly in mind our loving Savior, we shall learn consolation in sorrow, patience under suffering, courage amid conflict, and fidelity in love and service, even unto death. And so shall this adorable Holy One be unto us indeed “the Comforter.”

[davidjjackson]

Today is Christ the "Bro" Sunday?

Okay, it's actually Christ the King Sunday.

But let’s be honest—how often do we really treat Jesus as a King? In many Protestant churches, it feels like we’ve traded the reverence due to a King for the casual comfort of a "bro" or a "best friend."

Now, don't get me wrong—Jesus as our friend is a beautiful, biblical truth. In John 15:15, Jesus says, "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you." Friendship with Jesus is deeply personal and meaningful. It reminds us of His closeness, His love, and His desire for intimacy with us.

But here's the thing: friendship is just one facet of who Christ is. Christ the King Sunday reminds us of a different and equally vital truth—that Jesus reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. As Revelation 19:16 declares, "On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords." This is no casual role. It’s a position of ultimate authority, power, and sovereignty.

Too often, we approach Jesus as if He’s simply "one of us"—a buddy who’s here to cheer us on, solve our problems, and make us feel good. While it’s true that Jesus understands our struggles (Hebrews 4:15), we must not lose sight of the awe and reverence due to Him as our King.

What does it mean to treat Jesus as King?

Submission to His Authority A King isn’t someone we just “hang out with”; a King is someone we obey. When Jesus commands us to love our enemies, forgive those who hurt us, or serve the least among us, we don’t get to negotiate. We submit, because He is King.

Worship and Adoration A King is worthy of worship. Christ the King Sunday is an invitation to bow our hearts and lives before Jesus, acknowledging His supreme worth. When was the last time you truly marveled at His majesty?

Living for His Kingdom A King rules over a kingdom. As His followers, we are called to live as citizens of His kingdom, embodying His values of justice, mercy, and truth in a world that often resists them.

Finding the Balance

The beauty of Christ is that He is both friend and King. We need both truths to fully understand and experience His love. But when we overemphasize His friendship to the exclusion of His kingship, we risk reducing Jesus to someone who serves us, rather than the One we are called to serve.

This Christ the King Sunday, let’s reflect on what it means to honor Jesus as both. Yes, He is close to us, walking with us through every joy and sorrow. But He is also enthroned in glory, ruling over all creation with power and righteousness. Let’s worship Him not just as our friend, but as our King.

A Prayer for Christ the King Sunday King Jesus, we come before You today with hearts full of gratitude. Thank You for being our friend who walks with us and understands our struggles. But remind us also of Your majesty and authority as King. Teach us to live in joyful submission to Your will and to worship You with all that we are. Reign in our hearts and lives, Lord, and help us to live as faithful citizens of Your kingdom. Amen.